Jeanne B. Awalt, 77, homemaker, artist

Jeanne B. Awalt, a homemaker and accomplished artist of realistic and Impressionist landscapes and still-life pieces, died of breast cancer Sunday at her Ellicott City home. She was 77.

She was born Jeanne Burgess in Marshfield, Mass., and was raised there and also in Lake Worth, Fla., where she graduated from high school.

She studied at the University of Maryland School of Nursing and she became a registered nurse in 1948. She worked at University and Johns Hopkins hospitals until the mid-1950s, when she left to raise her children.

Mrs. Awalt was married in 1949 to Robert W. Awalt, a real estate developer. The couple lived in Hunting Ridge until moving to Ellicott City in 1959.

Mrs. Awalt, who studied painting for 30 years, had been a student of Gino Manelli, a well-known Baltimore artist.

She volunteered for more than 20 years at the Clifton T. Perkins State Hospital and in the dialysis unit of Howard County General Hospital.

Besides being a world traveler, Mrs. Awalt also enjoyed spending time at a family summer home on the Magothy River. She also liked playing pinochle Wednesdays at a Howard County senior center.

A Mass of Christian burial was offered yesterday at the Roman Catholic Church of the Resurrection in Ellicott City.

In addition to her husband, Mrs. Awalt is survived by three sons, Robert W. Awalt Jr. of Rodgers Forge, Stephen B. Awalt of the Woodbrook section of Baltimore County and Thomas F. Awalt of Pasadena; two daughters, Jeanne Suzan Rouse of Federal Hill and Diane L. Evans of Lutherville; a half-brother, John Nunley of Boston; and 10 grandchildren.